slide or not to slide

There are many more people out there who own trouble-free slides, than there are people who have trouble with their slides. What you read here is the vocal minority, as you do in any online forum.

Just think about it for a second: Out of all the campers you looked at, presumably several, *ONE* had possible slide problems.

My suggestion is you judge each camper individually on its own merits. If everything works and it works for you, try to work out a deal. Politely walk away if things don't seem right.

I wouldn't drop my slides for anything, and my DW wouldn't come if we didn't have slides.

I can't access the camper without atleast 1 slide out due to the design, but that doesn't change anything for me personally.

The only thing I might do is run a relay for the remote activation button so that I can put in / put out the slides while still in bed.

If you plan on stealth camping, make sure you can use it with the slide in. Kind of hard to be stealthy when you have to open up the slide.

DW and I just completed a 4600 miles 4 week trip in our very small non-slide 815. We never had a problem or wished for more space, must less having a slide. IMO, the loss of cabinet space (most don't have a cabinet in the slide) nor the potential for problems are worth the few extra feet.

My fathers 3000 series bigfoot easily sits 4 at the dinnett, but his camper is 8'-6" wide. We did see an Artic Fox 865 on our trip which is a non-slide with dinette that could sit 4 if you don't mind be a bit snug, but it wouldn't be bad, only issue is the weight of the Artic Fox unit.

PRodacy wrote:
Our OKanagan doesn't have a slide, but it seems roomier than many of the ones we looked at that had slides. Seems to depend a lot on the floor plan. I could be happy with either, but prefer one with no slide.

I have never heard that before...???

Our OKanagan doesn't have a slide, but it seems roomier than many of the ones we looked at that had slides. Seems to depend a lot on the floor plan. I could be happy with either, but prefer one with no slide.

We've had our Lance 1181 since Oct05, all we've done to the slide is spray on a light silicone lube every couple of years. If you want comfort in a TC I think a slide goes a long way to making the time inside much more pleasant! This is especially true during inclement weather or longer periods of darkness in winter. Doesn't matter whether you're alone or the whole family.
Each to their own but if you want simple with no chance of malfunction, get a shell! We'll stick with the slide!

We have an Eagle Cap 1160 with two slides. I have not had any problems with the operation of the slides However the benefits of the slides outweigh disadvantages. The big advantage is that it really opens up the interior of the camper when the slides are deployed. The minor down side is that the slides have to be partially deployed to use the bathroom or boondock on the side of the road.

Wish Lance still made the 992 ,like that model with 2 slides. Truck campers are small enough,slides make them more roomy. I have an 1191 with tent on the back.

We went the fiberglass clamshell route, and the ease of maintanence far outweighs the extra space that you get imho.?? We don't have pets either.. I tow a 7'X12' dual axle trailer with two Mcy's, or a small boat at different times,and with a slide I would want the added stability of a dually. My truck is also my daily driver. Unless we run into some bad weather we're not usually in T. C. Till bed time. There are times I do wish we had a little more room, but not really that often for me to want a slide. Good luck with your search.

Really depends on you. A single person can get by pretty nicely without a slide. As you add people and animals the slide gets more and more beneficial. Dinettes get bigger, more storage, more space to move around so you don't have to coordinate your movement. Your not always stepping on the dog, etc. It also "feels" much bigger when stuck inside in bad weather.

We wouldn't have one without a slide. If it was just me, I might have a different view.